Ibogaine: Rite of Passage

Ibogaine is a substance that is derived from the root of an African plant that grows in Gabon. This plant is originally used during initiations of the Bwiti culture, but in the sixties the anti-addictive properties of this psychoactive substance were discovered by Howard Lotsof.

Ibogaine is surrounded by controversy. The decisions about the use of Ibogaine in the treatment of addiction appear to be made on political and economical, rather than rational basis.

Despite the results that show the efficacy of Ibogaine, the pharmaceutical companies and the government show no interest and stay skeptical. Ibogaine has provided us with more insight in the mechanisms of addiction and the question if it needs to be used for treating this huge western problem gets more and more acknowledgment.

Cy (34) has been using a mixture of heroine and amphetamine for about 11 years, but his three children and his ambitions are more valuable to him. Kicking his addiction is a tough job for him. It reveals all his suppressed emotions.

Moussavou (22) lives in the village Mitoné in Gabon. For her the traditional African initiation is part of healing process. She suffered from an illness for more than a year and she hopes that eating the holy plant will be the starting point of a new phase in her life.

This 50 minute documentary shows the different aspects of this special substance by means of personal experiences and explanations of ex-addicts, treatment providers and experts.

55 Comments / User Reviews

Great article, I enjoyed reading your post on ibogaine. As a recovering addict, I know how helpful the drug can be, however, I do know that there are some people who are against it as it can be dangerous. I've been doing research on ibogaine addiction treatments and the pros and cons of this type of treatment.

Hopefully, this information can assist someone (friends and families) in choosing the best recovery treatments.

When it comes to rehabilitating oneself, what say the substance abuse counselors about the use of ibogaine in any form?

No doubt 12-step groups will frown upon it's use.

What are the rules when it comes to doing what it takes to get clean?

What about when taking personal responsibility for something that devestates everyone around you (and you)?

There won't be a way to make this available legally, but I am glad that when someone seeks help it can be found. Everybody is different. But all addiction SUCKS. Any and all effort towards sobriety is important.
Life is precious.

I found this interesting the way the Doc showed how the two people who took ibogaine in two different forms. One was the natural herb of ibogaine the other in a chemical pill based form.I think that you would get a more real effect from the natural herb form. The woman her experience was wow more extreme if I should say it that way. I have had an experience with winging myself off of chemical based pills i would not say I had an addiction because they were presribed for the conditions I faced. But its just the fact as it was mentioned in the film that when you take a pill does that does not cure the disease that you have. It covers up the symptoms of the disease. I am a firm believer in positive thinking and self healing. I got off the chemical pills that I was taking thru Fasting and Prayer.I wanted to flush my system of artificial chemicals. I did not want to take another artificial chemical to get me off of one artificial chemical. I believe that the artificial chemicals we place in our body don't have as much of a better effect than it would if we used Natural herbs foods and so on. If you notice that in the film that the male patient was told that the ibogaine pill he was given would not heal him just have a result of stopping the cravings of addiction. But the female in the village was taking the natural form as to cure her from her disease. So having said all this go for natural forms of herbs for cures.

I must ask, how is natural better than synthetic? Is there any proof for this claim? Synthetics remove certain chemicals found in the ''natural'' plant, making it much better, and more effective. Having said all of that, stop spreading misinformation.

Laird Beevor
- 01/14/2015 at 21:07

Addiction is the use of a product that has a negative result. As the craving returns, the user, knowing of the negative result, uses again...and again...
We are all addicted to something. Material or not. The pharmaceutical industry, even if they could, does not want to CURE any dis-ease. There is no money in it. They created the most addictive drugs and the gov't allows the medical profession to hand them out freely. That is the real misinformation that you seem to be a willing victim of. Sugar, booze, cigs and prescription drugs kill more people than anything else period. Even wars and religion.

Gary V
- 05/18/2011 at 03:24

Wow interesting stuff, not something that I have ever come across & I thought that I had tried them all at lest once.

Very valuable film. I am deeply saddened that work (genuine) to look at making something with this efficacy available to any with will to take the risks (there are risks) is not supported whole heartedly. I appreciate the honest and kind comments posted here. I have lost many friends to varied addiction, and worked w a few 100 others who fought, through excruciating pain, for every minute of peace and freedom. I hope many many more 'addicted' will watch this film, then find a place where they can choose to try this treatment; if everything else has failed, give yourselves one more chance. "you are worth it; we all are!" Thank you TDF.

Dig that man; I didnt even have a wallet for the last 8yrs of my addiction. didnt have money to put in it,the s*** went stright from my hand to the dope mans.I have been clean for 3yrs now, and as a result I now have a wallet, with money in the dam thing. side note: I had to get used to carrying a wallet since I'd gained so much weight I'd grown an a** as well. It was uncomfortable for a minute. ha ha. I dig it now brother!

Achems Razor
- 02/22/2011 at 22:06

@Hamsterdam:

Really?? WOW!! learn something new every day!

Hamsterdam, is that about if Hamsters would roam free in the Amsterdam canals. Hmmm??

As an 8 yr patient for spinal tumors and 4 blown discs, I want to clear up some terminology. I take opiates...a TON of them, but that is the price to have any quality of life. Now the important part. While I and other opiate/opioid patients are certainly all physically dependent on these meds, Physical Dependency is not addiction. If you stop taking a seizure or depression medicine abruptly, you will also become sick, and that HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ADDICTION, it is a physical dependency meaning you need the medicine to function, not be ill, et al.
Addiction is the overwhelming desire to chase the euphoric effect, raising the dosage on your own to do so, then when you run out of pills early, find another doc, and try to get another script...That's a classical addiction scenario, anything to chase that high. It becomes acute quickly. You are at a normal baseline, then take the drug the first time. When you return to "normal", it no longer feels normal, in fact you feel worse because your natural endorphins kick back and say, "looks like our job is being done for us, boys". I would also like to add that once I experienced withdrawal by failing to pack all my meds before a trip to visit family. Withdrawal is psychologically hellish, youre both too warm and too cold and sweating, I never barfed, but lots of diarrhea (if you take that lomotril or whatever the diarrhea med is, you can avoid the squirts, and thats a HUGE bonus). Anyway, my wife flew back to get the meds, but by the 4th day the worst of withdrawal was gone. I was still in awful pain from my condition, but no longer dopesick.

So Physical Dependency is not Addiction. It can contribute to it strongly, but it is the mind of the person that makes them an addict. Ive never taken my meds to get high, and Id be just as glad if I didn't need them, but I have to live with the reality I have, and before I will go along the garden path with doctors that want to experiment with "New and Better" drugs. Opiates have about the longest track record of any drug in common use. We know every single side effect, and possible problems for people prone to addiction. Side effects, mild nausea, constipation, drowsiness and dry mouth. Put that up against the drug profile for Vioxx (prior to being banned). One of the first docs I dealt with on this wanted to try Vioxx, and I asked him if he bothered to look at the remarkable amount of heart disease in my family. Of course he hadn't.
Im not here to promote Opiates, but to strip them of their demonization. They are a wonder in this world, and any knowledgeable doctor will tell you it has the safest, most effective history of any analgesic for moderate to severe pain.

Lastly, and actually the only reason I bothered to post.....It is OCCAM'S RAZOR, not Achem's, unless you're making it fit your name.

Sorry to differ, but cannabis has a far longer & safer analgesic record than opiates.

Suzanne Dang
- 10/27/2011 at 10:21

Maybe for minor operation, like dental care, but not with heavy surgery (try a caesarean with a splif, good luck!).

Jeigh
- 02/20/2011 at 06:41

@Achems Razor,

I guess I meant no processed sugar. Interesting diet though. I already follow some of it. Cut out processed foods along time ago. But, I don't have many vices anymore, No caffeine, soda, alcohol,tobacco, etc; just my cannabis and my fruits! I'm going to hang on to those just a little bit longer.

I hear you about the sugar. I try to avoid it, but It's not easy. I have wild cravings I don't completely understand sometimes. I only use the real stuff though. Cane sugar, and fruits. No corn crack.
I also try to use stevia as well. Who knows what the truth about truvia is though. It's hard to know, who is in who's pocket anymore. For now I will take it. I'm pretty healthy though, and not over weight, with good sugar levels. What is the cave man diet? I probably couldn't do that one. I gave up meat a few months ago. Although I am not sure the cave men ate much meat.

I do think it is really cool though, how nature uses man. Fifty-thousand years ago, apples were not very sweet. Somehow realizing mans sweet tooth, they evolved to get sweeter, and sweeter, until man became literally involved in their genetics, and turned them into candy. It's amazing that nature uses itself (nature of man), to propagate itself. Who is to say that, man is the dominant species? Maybe he is just being used by the apple trees, take over the universe. I'm way off topic now.. sorry guys. Must be that peyote I took years ago.

Wanna try another good addiction, and a killer, (Obese America type 2 diabetes) try sugar addiction, try and get off all sugars fruits etc:, anything that makes glucose like breads grains, and no substitute with man made poisons like aspartame et al.

Talk about withdrawal symptoms! try it sometimes.

When I want off all sugars to monitor my weight and health, I go on my "Paleo Diet" eat like a caveman. (LOL)

But the paleo diet is not for everyone, my nutritional typing is protein, not carbs.

@Achems Razor, Tobacco was without a doubt the most addictive substance I had to put down.
They say heroin is the ultimate seductress, but I say it is tobacco.

The estimate of smokers in the entire world is 1.2 billion. That is 1/5th of the population. 44 million Americans smoke, and 70 percent of those want to quit. The WHO states that one person dies from tobacco use every 8 seconds. Ten million cigarettes are sold every minute.

The cost for health care in the US for smokers. $72 billion a year.

And tobacco barons have their clients by the balls. Their product is everywhere; everywhere you look. You cant walk down the street without smelling tobacco smoke. Depending on where you live, you cant go into a restaurant or a bar, without getting a big drag.

And for what? All of this money and death, for what? To put money in some fat pig corporations pockets? What do we actually get out of a cigarette? The illusion of calm? The appetizing flavor of smoke? The annoying need to have one every hour, or turn into a little B!+ch?

Heroin kills around 2000 people a year. Aspirin kills around 2000 people a year.
Cocaine kills around 2000 people a year
Alcohol kills 80,000 people a year
TOBACCO? Our big winner at 380,000 a year!!!

Good thing Americans spend 50 billion dollars a year fighting the drug war.

So, I know how smart you are Achem, and I know you don't let many people get away with BS on here, but you are definitely feeding yourself a line.

Tobacco's subtle control over you is even evident in your post, if you look closely. You have no addictions; except cigarettes, off and on.

But, cigarettes are the worlds most common addictions, and the worlds most deadly. But big corporation tobacco, has got you fooled enough to where you will declare in public, that you have no serious addictions.

And why is it off and on. If it wasn't a serious addiction wouldn't it just be off?

So I guess the question is what is a "Hard" drug. Is it one that kills 200 times more than other drugs? Is it one that is the hardest to quit than the others? Is it the one that is used by and kills largest amount of people? Or does it mean a drug that has a profound effect on the users consciousness. Because from what your saying is, the last example is the only thing that qualifies a drug as being "hard".

If I were you, I would take a hard look at the facts, and re-think my addiction.

Like I said; cigarettes were by far the hardest habit I had to quit. Even after watching both my grandfathers die from lung cancer. Sound like a pretty serious addiction to me.

@Irishkev, Thanks, and, thanks again for bringing up your last point. I think the way most people perceive withdrawal is one of the things that makes it such a horrible experience to begin with. Don't get me wrong; It's hell, but It is also the first step towards getting better, and as the cliche goes, the first step is the hardest step.

If one knows they are not going to die from withdrawal, and then are able endure the hellish symptoms of withdrawal, they are immediately empowered. No longer physically addicted, and better able to face the obstacles further down the road. Looking back at my experiences, I find the "sickness" to have had a spiritual, or self-realizing affect over my life.

Remarkable, penetrating, and honest - and that's the heartfelt comments coming from some really amazing people responding above.

The film is a real gem: Meaning; inspired personal research begins now from extremely interesting insights offered.

(Thought Hunter S Thompson once used 'Ibogaine' as a literary conceit: through some hilarious ranting "explaining" the so called "strange behaviours" of an American presidential candidate. Funny stuff, but nothing to do with the actual compound/root here, and its potentially excellent holistic/medical/shamanic uses towards addiction.

2 final observations -(1)Suboxone can - eventually - hit one with withdrawls so bad, you'll stop, kneel down on the street and weep. Watch out that for that stuff, really! It should be approached in Micrograms; NOT milligrams.

(2) STFU wrote "..Please stop writing novels. Just submit a comment and get a life. No one reads nor cares about your view."

It's ironic to offer nothing pertinant whatsoever to the film OR comments, rather, react in a negative way for the hell of it: saying "no one reads or cares", seems untrue here, as it appears some smart, well-read and caring people... actually do.

Just one small point folks, I often hear people in withdrawal referring to themselves as being "sick", when in fact this is the first stage in getting yourself better. When I was going through it myself I found this way of thinking to be of help, even to the extent of laughing while enduring the worst that cold turkey had to throw at me.
I don't know if Ibogaine is a miracle cure or not, but I think an experience like this can help people trapped in the vicious cycle to step outside their addiction for a short time and so gain a new perspective on their lives. Sometimes this is all that's needed.

It worked for me. I was a opiate user for 15yrs and also suffered from depression for much longer. Actually it was the depression that started me onto the drugs. It helped but after many years of use I got addicted to the opiates! while in my experimental stage I noticed halucenogen usage would keep my depression away. 1 dose equalled 6 months of no dreppession. So I was keen to try this wonderful plant. Fortunatly I was able to find a sympathetic doctor thru a methadone mainainance program in New Zealand. Away from the center the Doctor administered the plant extract. To keep this brief... I have been clean for a few years now. No longer require the methadone either. Free at last!

@wayside; Not sure on locations of treatment centers. You are right to worry a bit in regards to panic attacks in conjunction with halucenogen usage, not a good combo. If done in a controlled environment should be managable though. And if not, it is more than likely that the drugs effects would be cancelled by administering narcan to the patient.

@Azilda, Thanks ;).
I have had Ayahuasca. On a few different occasions and prepared a couple of different ways. You may know this already, but it is actually a combination of different medicinal herbs, and not a singular plant like some think. The Caapi Vine is the most potent ingredient I believe. A friend of mine runs an orphanage in Machu Picchu, and I have tried it there in the mountains, and down in the jungle with a group being led by a shaman.

Again... I am not much for shamans, and as I have seen many times before, even this very sincere shaman was constantly employing ego stroking methodologies into his ceremony, and the subjects were eating it up. Also, once you but a monetary value on the experience, it changes the experience. And most of these shamans are getting paid for their services somehow, and for many it becomes, just another job guiding the gringos.

Both of my experiences where incredible and enlightening, however for me; the shifts in reality and perception, though deep on many different levels, were all predictable.

That may just be me. We all react differently to different things. Every time I have an experience with Peyote, it is a new journey. There is a much more personal connection with the plant, and then the universe, and beyond.

Btw, You can make your own ayahuasca at home. It wont be exactly the same, but there are many plants that contain DMT and are not illegal in most countries.

You must be very strong to be going through this medical ordeal. There are several things that stick out from your post, that could be used to help you right now. Your condition sounds very serious. STOP calling your use of pain medication an addiction. You are not addicted. You may be dependent, but that is not the same thing. You have to STOP worrying about what other people perceive, and live life through your own perceptions.

I would stay away from any ashrams. Why would someone in your condition be doing Yoga? Who would ever recommend that with your condition? That sounds like the last thing you need to be doing. If your body breaks like a pretzel, don't bend it like a pretzel. If herbal medicine helped you so much, have one of your kids plant you an herb garden. You can grow every single herb you were given, and for much less money. You have to take control of your own happiness.

Finally about the Ibogaine root. It may help you find more strength to deal with you affliction and life situation, but psychedelics help people with addiction by forcing them to look inside themselves, and see what emotional baggage is causing them to abuse drugs. What they are trying to escape, and how to take responsibility for their lives. You are not in this category. You are not trying to escape anything but pain. But you do need to start taking responsibility for you happiness. I was hit by a drunk driver while crossing the street on foot. My entire body was crushed, six operations including a facial reconstruction. I didn't look at the pain medication as my enemy. I took it as needed, and when I was done, stopped. I still have massive pain, and when I can't deal with it, or need a break from it, I take a med. That's what medication is for. I could be prescribed bottles and bottles of the stuff, but I know what I am comfortable with, and the amount of pain I can handle before the quality of my life begins to suffer.

I would suggest seeing psychiatrist for this condition and mental battle you are having. Accepting your situation, and embracing your struggle, will make it easier to endure, and change your self-image for the better. Good luck.

thankyou so much v, for opening our minds with knowledge. and not only are you educating people, you are for sure helping and saving people's life's with documenties like these. i had no knowledge of this substance untill now, and this for sure will help my brother with his cocaine addiction. thankyou so much.

In less than 30 mins of googling I saw there were Ibogaine treatment centers in Mexico, Amsterdam, Costa Rica and Vancouver. Does anyone know of any others ? My girlfriend wants to try it for a number of psychological issues she has, but she suffers from panic attacks. This seems to me to be a disastrous mix. I wonder is there any way that the effects of the Ibo can be neutralised if it gets too much for her ?

@Jeigh Of course there's bootlegged tobacco, but that's just to avoid the taxes on a legal product. No-one can go through hundreds of dollars worth of tobacco a day (unless you're smoking Cubans or something). It'd be quite a different story were it criminalised with the penalties for selling tobacco in line with those for selling heroin.

@STFU Please..Please stop writing novels. Just submit a comment and get a life. No one reads nor cares about your view.
I disagree, a lot of people read the comments and yes some tend to be a bit long but those are easily skipped over if you don't want to read them. Your comment although short was not necessary. If you prefer short comments go directly to Google video or Youtube, this site is as much for ideas received as it is for the ones given.
******

@Jeigh...interesting story.
@all...has anyone experimented with Ayahuasca? I read a fantastic book called The Cosmic Serpent, Ayahuasca and DNA and the Origins of Knowledge...amazing! although my lack of education made me lose a lot of the scientific stuff...still!
az

I'm going to watch this in just a few minutes, but first I wanted to thank the above posters for their honesty about their addictions. I guess you could say I'm in the throes of a 10yr "addiction" to opiates. I put it in quotes because my opiates are prescribed, I rarely take more than prescribed, however when I've attempted to wean myself off by myself, or the several times my meds were stolen; it was pure hell!! I was originally put on the fentanyl patch by "experts" on my genetic disorder 10yrs ago. I was VERY skeptical about this after researching it, but they convinced me that I would need pain meds for the rest of my life & the patch was the best, most effective, and easiest to "control". I was sick as heck for the year that they spent raising the dose-in fact they had to put me on a strong anti-nauseant usually reserved for severe effects of chemotherapy. It cost me $35/pill. (2-4/day). Since then, it's been a nightmare, having to add yet another opiate first for breakthrough pain, then just to keep up with the chronic pain. (I have severe osteoporosis with 2-5 fractures/month, average 8-12 dislocations/day, and my fractures never heal completely-it's a degenerative connective tissue disorder. I'm only 50. I also have glaucoma & kidney disease-in the one kidney I was born with. I had a "normal" life until an accident 12 years ago seemed to trigger everything. I was a healthcare professional, have 3 grown, INCREDIBLE kids-my youngest affected & already having problems at age 20-he won't TOUCH opiates, but uses medical MJ & occasional shrooms. He's doing GREAT-a Junior in college, 4.0GPA & works 2 jobs. Yea, I'm a PROUD mom!! ;). Anyways, I tried living & working at an ashram about 7 years ago, for 2 years, in exchange for learning yoga & Ayurvedic medicine. While the herbal & yoga helped a LOT, we were able to get me off of the extra opiate & my patch dosage down to the lowest dose-I began having a serious heart arrhythmia & we had to stop there. After I left, I kept my dose as ling as possible with the herbal helping-BUT, at $500 and going up-I just couldn't afford them anymore, plus that's when the fractures increased & serious dental problems began. Needless to say-my doses are up-not as high as they were on the patch, but the 75mg oxycodone/day probably makes up for it.
The bottom line is I'm TIRED of it. I'm tired of being seen by everyone in town as a drug addict. And I'm tired of not knowing if I have ANY other options besides opiate addiction for the rest of my life. This root sounds like it *could* help me find the answers. It sounds like it could offer me some hope!!
Peace!!

@Reason's Voice, You say your grandma wouldn't jack a car for a pack of cigarettes. Well imagine if, overnight, cigarettes (and nicotine products in general) were banned and criminalised, creating a black market where the price of a pack jumps to $200. Perhaps your grandma wouldn't commit crimes for the money, but some would.

@ audiophile
Haha, You thought you were first, You'll have to be up earlier. Good comment though.
@ Waldo
Man, try not to discourage the troops. You can kick heroin cold turkey. I must have done it 5 or 6 times with a heavy habit before I realised I was going in circles and kicked the s"!t for good. You will never find heroin pure enough to give you terminal widthdrawals. You can beat this stuff, although it's no picnic.
Now, if I can kick the weed, gargle and tobacco I'll be all set. And just stick to the mushrooms!

@Waldo, Thanks for your insight and experience. I had a go at chasing the dragon once myself. I did end up kicking by myself unfortunately (or maybe not). I crawled into my 66 mustang; drove out of the city, and deep into the woods; and began my descent into withdrawal hell. I knew I actually wouldn't die, and I didn't want a single soul around me. It took almost two weeks. My baby had been dilaudid. I had a seemingly unending source of it. Drugstore cowboys could have only dreamed of such a mother load. All of this at age 19.

So, obviously, I did not return to that city, and went to a little tourist town to work for the summer, and figure out what to do with my life. Through my work, I met a couple of snow birds, and by that winter; I had accidentally (not kidding) found myself in a place called Wiricuta (Huiricuta). It is the botanical birth place of the sacred succulent know popularly as Peyote. It is the epicenter of the plant and cut fresh from the ground, in my opinion; the most powerful and productive psychedelic in the world. I spent three months there, and grew into what I had always dreamed of becoming.

I didn't buy into any of the ridiculous mumbo jumbo surrounding the plant. Though the natives have their rights to belief and culture, for me this was unnecessary. I had never heard of Castaneda, and I used the plant alone, to guide me into the chasms of my mind and heart. I was like a surgeon. The negativity was easily removed once I learned its source and hiding places, and I gained a personal power I could not have dreamed of having before. I have never worried about addiction again. After a few years of annual week long visits, I put down every bad habit I had. And this is all while being a professional musician. It seemed to give me super powers over my will...but really, just woke me up to the power I had all along.

I haven't watched the film yet, so I don't know much about this particular subject. I do know however, from my experiences with Peyote, and after reading a couple of Castaneda books (with disgust); many people are only driven by greed, which is in turn driven by fear. Even healers and gurus that really believe their own shtick. These healers or purveyors of this medicine are in reality unnecessary. Many people (not all) could heal themselves with the right medicines. I no longer have fear. I no longer have insecurities. And I no longer have any problems.

Oh the perverse irony of the guys in this video claiming that big pharmaceutical companies are evil because they won't consider paying R&D costs involved in the manufacture and distribution of the Iboga plant. "They are only concerned with the interests of their shareholders" and "It always comes down to money" then in the next breath and on their associated websites are demanding at least $1500 (and up to $30'000!!!) a pop for treatment. My 300 pound friend called me a fat-head last week!

I would definitely try this out but the thought of paying these two faced motherless sons of a Jackal $1500 so that they can administer a plant root is just ridiculous. I wouldn't be able to sleep at night. Yet again, dollar driven dealers profiteer from the misfortune of others. What's new eh? These guys will lift your wallet just as quickly as the big pharma boys.

It shouldn't cost more than $20 per root. Yes they provide a safe environment, yes they monitor heart rate. Blah, blah, blah. Does the addict really need that? A lifetime of drug use is more than enough training required to prepare for a 3 day bender with the pixies and the unicorns.

According to some statistics 1 in 300 people die from the treatment and concentration of active drug to body mass of the recipient has to be carefully taken into account before administering any dosage. With that in mind I would rather just chew on the root, paint my face black and live in a wigwam whilst tripping my bollocks off for 3 days. Do I really need a heart monitor and fancy bedding?

It is disturbing how one can buy a 10 dollar hit of crack cocaine on any back-street in any major city in the world and yet one must pay thousands and thousands of dollars to treat the despicable and debilitating disease of drug addiction using the root of the Iboga plant, which cost pennies to dig out of the ground.

How far we have travelled from our humble roots and nature when 10 cents worth of product plus add-ons will set you back between a month and a years wages.

I want to try this out without all the extra's. I am willing to pay up to $50 for the root. Mail me.

@Waldo; Thank you again for sharing you personal knowledge on this. You are a strong man to be so open and honest about it all.
@Topic; I can attest to the non addictive druggs effects but as Waldo said they are fine in conjunction with a rehab program. Just open sales would only lead to heroin addicts dropping some halucinogen as well. They will not for the most part quit the addictive drug on their own volition and supliment with this drug.

You are absolutely right about some addictions being very different than others. I speak from experience, 20 years of it as a matter of fact. I am both a recovering heroin addict and a drug counselor. I have not used in three years. Mental addiction, called dependancy, is totally different from physical addiction. Marijauna is a good example of mental addiction. Ciggarettes and coffee have some physically addictive properties, but its not very seriouse compared to say heroin. You stop smoking and you get ill tempered, lots of indigestion, light insomnia, and of course cravings for cigs. You stop heroin and your muscles begin to cramp to the point you may pass out from the pain- you throw up everything you eat or drink- you have diarrhea so bad you may dehydrate (I did). Most people that are seriousely addicted end up having to go to the hospital if they stop cold turkey (I did). Its a lot more dangerous and difficult than stopping cigs or coffee.

@ Everyone

Hallucinogens do help with the mental process of addiction, if administered in the right setting and with the right therapist. I assist a liscensed physician with drug addiction therapy. At one time he experimented with using a psycho active compound with some success. However the compounds he used, mostly LSD and psilocybin, did not seem to help with the physical withdrawal accept when they were active in the body, in other words when these people came down there sickness resumed. The serious physical withdrawal symptoms of opiate addiction can last as long as two to three weeks, followed by up to a year of depression and feeling like a truck ran over you every morning. This is because the opiate addict's body stops producing endorphines, which regulate pain, digestion, sinuses, and general mood and energy levels.

I have done a lot of research on ibogaine, and it looks promising. They say it not only works as a psycho active compound to help reduce mental addiction, but also works to repair the bodies ability to produce endorphines. They say that after only one session of treatment the addicts tolerance to opiates is lowered, which is a good sign his body is starting to repair itself. They say that only a minority relapse back into addiction after full treatment, which may include several sessions of treatment with ibogaine. No other treatment on the market can say that a majority of their patients stay clean, accept replacement therapy. Replacement therapy though just replaces the drug with a less damaging legal drug- like methadone or suboxone.

If this drug turns out to be all it is cracked up to be, it will be a life saver for many many people. Opiate addiction, which includes heroin and drugs like loratab, loracet, oxycontin, percocet, etc. is one of the biggest problems this country faces. Many in the feild of addiction treatment say this catagory of drug is the most abused and addictive drug in the US. I have to take a substitute called suboxone every day to hold the depression and other symptoms of withdrawal at bay, its no fun trust me. The drug costs a fortune, six to seven dollars per pill. That means a thirty day script of two pills a day, a common dosage, runs over three hundred dollars!! It also means I have done nothing but trade one addiction for another, even though this one doesn't get me high. I still have to have it or I get too sick to operate, that's addiction. I sincerely hope they eventually approve this treatment. If it is what they say it is, it will give sooo many people their life back- me included.

P.S. Don't over simplify addiction please. If you knew how it tears peoples lives to pieces, ruins their self esteem, costs most their families and freedom. No one in their right mind would choose it, it is not that simple at all. Handing out dime store advice and holier than thou judgements only perpetuates the problem.

@tyler; Yes drug addiction is a social issue, and it is just an addiction such as coffee, cigarrettes, and entertainment. However how many people do you know who have killed, raped, robbed, or cheated to pay for their morning cup of joe? Amsterdame is starting to backtrack on it's open drug policies, Vancouver is descending into a heroine and methadone fueled hell. It's not as simple as you imply. Not all addictions are the same. My grandma is not about to jack your car to pay for her pack of mistys.

Got into Ibogo "Bwiti" research some years ago, read many books and saw this Doc about a year ago, I am sad the issue is still up for debate "retract that last statement it hasn't even made it that far" . How many more people must die everyday from their addictions, how many more families destroyed? When is enough enough ? Where is the line in the sand, cause I wanna know. We need to decriminalize all plants and fungi and find our balance once again. We need to stop declaring rediculous wars on nature which are really a war on ourselves, and accept these plant teachers back into our society with education in responsible and appropriate use. They have been with us since the dawn of time and our ancestors used them as far back as you can trace the human lineage. Nature has provided us an answer to every illness and every affliction we could ever face. Capitalist Society in an attempt to control access to that natural solution, so that people cannot have access to anything free, has imprisoned us. It has dumbed us down and we have lost all knowledge of these sacred plants and medicines. What was freely given to man before by mother nature is now immitated and sh$t out of some labratory and sold to him, these compounds lack their natural synergistic components and supporting alkaloids to cure. In pill form they are isolated and lack their natural holistic benefit that millions of years of evolution had turned into the perfect medicine. We need to re-investigate our lost heritage and traditions, we need to recognize that these plants work, and drop the fearful stigma that surrounds them.
Iboga in particular has limitless potential, we have an epidemic and we are locking people away in our prisons every day. It's time to realize drug abuse and addiction for what it is "A SOCIAL ISSUE" and not a criminal offense. People are addicted to coffee, cigarrettes ,tv, shopping, video games, face book ect ect ....if we were to suddenly start putting them into jail for their addictions this country would be outraged and wouldn't stand for it. The chemical reaction in the brain and dopamine rewards are all the same whether it's heroin or playing World of Warcraft. Iboga has the potential to work on all these lesser addictions with the same effect. Giving hope to the porn addict who is losing his marriage or the 40yr old virgin addicted to WOW . It's psychotherpeutic potential is unrivaled except maybe by MDMA or Psilocybin but then again they all work in different ways with far different effects.
END THE DRUG WAR, REGAIN OUR HUMANITY, START THE HEALING WE SO DESPERATELY NEED IN THIS SOCIETY.

There is so much to say but I will keep it short. Applying meditation with the use of some of these psychotropics can lead to truth. If one has developed enough concentration to withdraw the attention from all mental activity and the senses then one can achieve visionary states beyond even what Tim Leary documented. If any of you have experienced the 'clear light' state or the 'secondary clear light' state documented by Leary then you will have some clue to what I am speaking of. I am saying that this mental state isn't what Tim says it is, it's not Nirvana, it's actually the 'first concentration level' also termed the 'infinite sphere of space' by Buddhist texts. I am claiming that if one works hard to achieve fluid meditative stability then one can transcend the 'infinite sphere of space'. The implications derived from such experiences concerning the nature of mind are staggering.

Oh boy! I get to be the first one to comment on this doc! It's pretty good. It would have been much more interesting if they had gone into the chemistry or pharmacology of the plant more but that's just because I LOVE chemistry and pharmacology. I've been hearing and doing as much research as a resourceful layman can on ibogain and it appears to be very legit. It's not that surprising, though, when you consider it's chemical similarity to other hallucinogens which also have reports of curing addictions. I think that the main benefit of these substances is in their disassociative effect. The individual is able to see the problems that plague their lives because there is a seperation from them. The pain, fear, shame, disgust and other emotions bundled up with the traumas of existance melt away because they are no longer perceived as relavent. The only thing that's left is the frank reality of the problems, their causes and the effect that they have on the individual. In this video they hit on a profound truth, that we each have all of the questions and the answers inside of us, it just depends on how much negative emotion and baggage they are wrapped up in that obscures them from our everyday view. Indeed, sometimes the core problem/trauma has been so deeply hidden and for so long that the negative effects seem to be detatched and existing in and of themselves. The disassociative process of particular hallucinogens allows the individual to objectively look at these issues and process them. To realize where their pain and neuroses come from and let go of the baggage. That is the primary benefit of using hallucinogens in the psychotherepeutic setting. It struck me while watching this video that at some point ibogain will be used as a model for treating drug addiction simply because addictions cost so much money in lost productivity and crime. However, extensive efforts will be taken to find out exactly how the ibogain works it's magic. This information will be taken to create an ultra-specific drug which will relieve the withdraw symptoms while not having the hallucinatory effects, because this culture seems to have a paralysing fear of altered states of consciousness. Unfortunatly what will be lost is the self-reflective aspect of the trip which is perhaps the most beneficial, allowing the individual to deal with the personal problems which drive them to escape into drug use in the first place. Like yin and yang the two parts of the ibogain trip are necessary together and compliment each other.
So, that's all for now. Do good things and appreciate the good fortune that you have. ;)